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Natasha Polyakov
Formerly a sergeant in the Northern Federation's counter-terrorism unit, Natasha deserted after an operation under her command went disastrously wrong. Despite being amongst the unit's best agents, she was unnervingly headstrong when it came to combat, and failed to anticipate unexpected complications. After the fiasco, she fled the Northern Federation, fearing a life sentance in a military prison. Since then, she has settled into the role of a mercenary, undertaking several jobs with her HMV, the Vegeance. Biography An Unusal Childhood Natasha's parents were an odd couple. Her father was an HMV pilot during the Great Northern War, one of the first to be deployed against Soviet invaders on Moscow. Natasha's mother was an agent for the Northern Federation, and would often leave for long periods of time. However, both parents took time to teach their only child the skills of their respective trades. So while most twelve year old girls were just starting to swap dolls for sullen teenager demeanour, Natasha was learning the finer points of espionage from her mother. Simillarly, her father managed to convince his friends to allow his daughter onto a slightly redundant HMV simulator. At school, Natasha displayed a keen intelligence, but also an agressive personality. She was suspended for a week after headbutting another student just for cutting into the lunch line. A Life in the Military With an upbringing and parents like Natasha's, it was unsurprising that she would pursue a career in the military. The only problem for her was how to combine her HMV expertise with her espionage training. The logical choice was the counter-terrorsim unit; an organisation which rooted out and destroyed terrorist cells operating within the Northern Rim. While the majority of these groups were Soviet remnants who refused to accept the Federation, the CTU also the most powerful figures in the organised crime section of the criminal underworld. Natasha signed up as soon as she left university. From the start, it was clear that she had the potential to become a remarkable soldier. However, Natasha was too headstrong, constantly rushing into situations without taking the time to formulate an airtight plan. Much of her strategy was reliant on the element of surprise, but she didn't always have that on her side. Nevertheless, Natasha eventually earned the rank of sergeant, gaining her own squad. On the Run Despite Natasha's rising fame in the CTU, she never quite managed to ditch her overly-confident metality. This would become her undoing. A terrorist cell had been tracked to a building on the outskirts of New Petrograd, and Natasha's team had been called in with only a limited timeframe to work in. She ordered her team through the door, staying outside to communicate with snipers watching the entrance. Once again, Natasha had failed to anticipate something: the terrorists had hostages, and they were strapped to explosives. The resuslting detonation flattened the entire building, killing all the civillians and five members of Natasha's squad. Just three hostiles were caught in the blast, the rest allowed to escape in the confusion. It was a total disaster, and Natasha knew that she would get the blame. At the very least, she faced a dishonourable discarge. At the most, prison. Neither option appealed to her, so she deserted, fleeing the Northern Federation to the free space between it and the Empire. Shortly after, Natasha's mother vanished without a trace. As she had gone freelance, the general theory was that one of her previous client's enemies had caught up with her. Although this would later turn out to be untrue, Natasha and her father saw it as the only explanation. Just a few months afterwards, Natasha's father drank himself into an early grave. She was unable to return to the Northern Federation for the funeral. From Soldier to Mercenary Now that she had deserted the military, Natasha needed a new form of income. Mercenary was the obvious choice, given her skill set. She began taking on a wide variety of jobs, everything from espionage to plain out murder. It lacked the nobility of the CTU, but the pay was good. So good, in fact, that Natasha was able to purchase her own HMV, the Vengeance. With the new mech came new jobs, but one of them would change Natasha's life once more. It was a job for Haken Wastia. The poet had gathered a team of mercenaries with the intention of killing one of the most powerful crime lords in the galaxy, and Natasha was one of those mercenaries. While on the mission, she grew close to Axel Erachin, and once it had finished, they left to have a drink in a bar on Vegas. However, while Natasha was in the restroom, Axel was confronted by Ray Shishigami and, amongst other things, given a choice about Natasha; either leave without a fight, and she lived, or stay, in which case a sniper would kill her in an instant. Unable to sacrifice Natasha for a shot at Ray, Axel left. As far as Natasha knew, her date had simply ditched her in the bar. A Message from Beyond the Grave The morning afterwards, Natasha recived a call from a young woman called Catherine, who claimed to be Natasha's half sister. Catherine also said that Natasha's mother was, in fact, still alive, but both of them were in considerable danger on Moscow. After a short converstation, Natasha agreed to somehow make her way back to the Northern Federation. Whatever happened there, Natasha returned to the Empire a few months afterwards. She came back a more sorrowful, though no less hotheaded woman, and undertook a guard job for Decel Erachin, mindful of her employer's son. Sure enough, Axel and his crew returned to Factory, and Natasha was briefly reunited with her most hated love before Imperial forces began their attack on the planet. After Decel Erachin's death, the mercenaries were captured by the Empire and taken prisoner on board their flagship, where Natasha witnessed Axel beating a defenceless man to death. Disgusted with him, she took a few hours of soul searching (see: drinking) before deciding he was a good man afterall, right before the Imperial attack on Brimstone. The mercenaries afterwards returned to Homeworld, where Natasha was to enjoy but a few hours of peace until the Forefathers and Reclaimers both launched campaigns against the planet. During the fight with the Forefathers, Natasha faced Ares, God of War, and defeated him, though not without severe injuries including a broken foot and several crushed vertabrae. When the battle was finished, at vast cost to both sides, Axel proposed to Natasha. She accepted, and the were wed within the week. At the ceremony, Catherine revealed to her half-sister that new evidence had come to light and she had a chance at returning to the Federation as a free woman. Family Life Natasha and Axel maintained homes on both Villa and Moscow, dividing their time between the two. She was on Moscow when she gave birth to her first child, Nathan Erachin, who was three when his parents took him to the reunion at the Wastia's home. Personality Natasha generally acts like a tough gal, simply out to survive and willing to do whatever she has to just to keep on living. However, anyone who gets to know her will realise that she is still wracked with guilt over the deaths of her team, and the tragedy has never stopped haunting her. In fact, it troubles her so much that she will do anything to save the lives of the few friends she has, as long as it doesn't place her in ''too ''much danger. Other personality traits of Natasha's are her hotheadedness, her razor sharp wit and, on occasion, her surprising selfishness. Ignore all of the above - motherhood has settled her. She still carries a gun with her almost everywhere she goes. Interactions with other characters Axel - During the mission for Haken, Natasha quickly identified Axel as a man she could easily wrap around her little finger. After a not-so-subtle variation on the "Grab your coat, you've pulled" line, Axel was pretty much putty in Natasha's hands. That said, she began to find herself returning the feelings as she began to know more about Axel. As mentioned above, he was forced to leave her in order to save her life, but as far as Natasha knew, he simply left her in a sleazy Vegas bar. When they encountered each other, however, Axel explained what had happened, and after the Battle of Homeworld, they were swiftly married. Haken - Initially regarding Haken as an incompetant fool of a leader, Natasha came to respect him as he struggled against people much more masculine than he. After giving Haken a speech, which mainly focussed around "growing a pair", Natasha got the impression that the poet regarded her as a friend. This budding friendship was dented a little when Natasha got drunk and refused to help the poet and his gang in their pursuit of Kyla Adan, but she came through in the end. She, along with her husband and son, were present at Haken and Ally's reunion. Combat Style WIP HMV WIP Category:Characters